As part of the Spring Into Action campaign running from April 16 – May 1, we will be posting daily about topics related to extreme poverty and how anyone and everyone can join the movement to end it.

What if a group of people made some big audacious goals to make the world a better place for everyone and the whole world agreed to do their part to make those goals a reality? Well you'd have the Sustainable Development Goals.

There are people in this world that do crazy, unthinkable things to make the world a better place. Elijah is one of those people doing crazy things. He lives in the Silaloni area of Kenya - outside of Mombasa. Kenya is one of the countries where many people live on less than $1.90 a day. Extreme poverty is defined by the World Bank as living on an average of US $1.90 a day or less. Families in these conditions represent well over a billion people on the planet, with nearly double that amount living on less than just $2.50. But, poverty is more than a lack of income. Extreme poverty is multidimensional.  

Personal determination is a characteristic highly sought after by CHOICE Humanitarian in its recipients. Susmita Gurung, a CHOICE recipient from Nepal that displayed a high level of personal determination has a story worthy of sharing. Susmita, a 17-year-old girl from the village of Bangre, has a goal to help others by becoming an English teacher. She has faced many hard situations almost from birth but is still determined to attain her goal.

What is the price of confidence? To one Nepalese entrepreneur, confidence was four piglets and the dedication to reach beyond the life he once lived. The family of Chandra Bahadur was identified by CHOICE Humanitarian as one living in extreme poverty in the village of Bhorletar, Nepal. Although Chandra was a hardworking craftsman and family man, he and his family still struggled to meet even their most basic needs.

We have partnered with doTERRA International to benefit the earthquake-torn country of Nepal. Through this partnership, doTERRA is working with rural Nepal villages in conjunction with its Co-Impact SourcingTM initiative. In Nepal, rural villagers living in extreme poverty survive on less than $2 a day.

This partnership provides critical economic opportunities, particularly in rural areas where they are most needed and a better standard of living through improved access to clean water, education, and medical services. This work addresses many of the new Global Goals for Sustainable Development, including gender equality that serves to underscore the importance of this work.